Playing his London debut live at Riot! Presents Goodgreef on 27th November, we took some time out to chat to Bootek who was recently been crowned the ‘La Roux of hard dance’ by Mixmag. Famed for his jaw dropping, awe inspiring mash up of familiar tracks, remixed, edited and given that tougher ‘tech’ edge with the newest sounds from the scene, Bootek discusses Creamfields, the scene plus a sneaky preview about what’s in store production-wise…

Hi Bootek! For those that are new to the Bootek sound, can you please give a brief introduction of yourself?

Sure, its all about fun filled tekk edged mash up sets! Lots of remixes of big current and classic tracks all mixed together! A full-on fun party techno set!

Are you from a musical background? What are your earliest musical memories?

Not really, I played the trumpet in school though haha! I started DJing at the age of 12 when I bought my 1st pair of belt drives which were a pain to mix on but the bug bit me then and I absolutely loved the sound of different tracks mixed together and the creativity of mixing, more for the actual mixes and blending tracks together.

Next month you will be playing your 4 deck mash up at the Riot! Presents Goodgreef party, what can people expect?

Lots of familiar tracks all tekked up and mixed together in an hour. I’ve just finished off about 10 new releases in the past couple of months all of which I’m yet to play out so there will be a lot of new exclusive remixes to play including a new remix I’ve done of BK’s Playing with Knives forthcoming on Riot! Records!

How did you debut live show go down at Creamfields?

Really well! I was so happy to see an absolutely rammed arena within about 15 minutes of starting the set and for the 3rd set of the day, that was a real achievement and I am very grateful for Cream & Mixmag really getting behind it and pushing it! Not to mention I was shitting myself being the 1st LIVE set so it couldn’t have gone any better! ?

Tell us about your 4-deck mash up sets! How do you cope with just two hands?

Haha, its all about lots and lots of pre-planning, you cant get 3 -4 tracks to sit on top of each other if the keys clash and if they aren’t re-edited to do so! It is really hard work and sometimes its like an hour work out at the gym but it really takes things to the next level for me and adds a new dimension to DJing which is a nice change!

Famed for your mash up of familiar tracks, tell us which ones have been going off in your sets at the moment?

The best reaction I get to a mash up at the moment is mixing together Insomnia, Run DMC – It’s like that and Daft Punk – Around The World Bootek’s remix, together with a loop of Tainted Love, bootek in there too to add some beefy bottom end percussion to really drive it along!

Mixmag once described you as ‘the La Roux of Hard Dance’ and DJ Mag ‘the 2 Many DJ’s of Hard Dance’. How you do you feel about comparisons like this?

Absolutely chuffed to bits with it and without these guys supporting me, there is no way I would be where I am now!

What do you think of the scene here in the UK at the moment? Where is the best place to party?

The scene is still healthy in general but a lot of areas have been hit pretty badly by the recession over the past 18 months or so. I’ve always got a place in my heart in Scotland to party as they are absolutely mental up there as well as the North East at the moment too! I’ve also been playing a lot in N.Ireland & Ireland over the past couple of months which is a new area for me and those guys know how to party!

Is there anything exciting on the horizon production-wise?

I’ve just completed my first official mix to be release on Masif Hard Dance Anthems 3 in Australia, all covers which I’ve been hard at work on for the last 6 months! Really happy with the way the mix turned out so keep your eyes peeled for it to land towards the very end of the year!

Out of all the places Bootek has travelled to, which has been the most memorable?

Most memorable has got to be Japan, such a culture shock from what I’m used to and such friendly people as well.

Where would you like to take the Bootek next?

I’ll be taking the LIVE sets on a big festival tour next year incorporating live visuals alongside the set and I would love to perform at some major European Festivals in places that you wouldn’t imagine harddance getting a foot in!

Anything else you wish to add/ promote?

Check out my website for free mixes and what I’m up to in general, head to www.bootekdjs.com

BOOTEK LIVE is part of the MASSIVE line up for Riot! Presents Goodgreef on 27th November. Get your tickets @ matterlondon.com